Race fundraising setting record

Candidates drop millions into gubernatorial contest

Being the governor of Colorado currently pays $90,000 a year — a tidy sum that’s still but a fraction of the millions of dollars that several candidates are pumping into the gubernatorial race as the contest careens toward the June 26 primary.

As of June 13, Democrat Jared Polis had dropped more than $11.2 million of his own money into his campaign while Republicans Victor Mitchell and Walker Stapleton have used their own wealth to add another $4.8 million in loans (Mitchell) and $837,000 in direct contributions (Stapleton), according to newly released state campaign figures.

The new finance figures are further evidence that Colorado is set to have a record-shattering year in the governor’s race, which already is the most expensive gubernatorial contest in state history.

So far, the slate of candidates looking to replace Gov. John Hickenlooper has spent nearly $24.6 million — more than twice the roughly $10.9 million total from just four years ago, according to state records.

The situation has prompted complaints about the governor’s mansion being for sale, but some of the less-wealthy candidates are caught in the money game too.

The latest figures show that a super PAC-type group that supports Democrat Michael Johnston recently received a $1 million contribution from Michael Bloomberg, the gun-control advocate and former New York City mayor.

That $1 million is on top of another $1 million that Bloomberg already has given the group, called Frontier Fairness — which itself has spent more than $5 million this election.

Democrat Cary Kennedy, meanwhile, had less than $104,000 in her campaign war chest as of June 13. She raised the money issue at a debate on Monday night, looking at Polis and noting that “he’s sure spending an awful lot of money.”

Still, Kennedy has gotten outside help too. A group that supports her, called Teachers for Kennedy, has spent nearly $1.9 million already — an investment that included a mildly negative ad that caused an earlier stir in the mostly friendly Democratic primary.